Lahore:  Chief Minister's Youth Initiative (CMYI) Bikes Portal, developed by the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB), is providing 20,000 motorcycles on installments to the students.

A total of 72,640 online applications have been received, with 57,366 applications for Petrol Bikes and 15,274 for e-bikes. It is pertinent to mention that last date of registration was 29th April, 2024, however; due to the overwhelming response and to accommodate more applicants, the deadline was extended till 1st May 2024.

The Government of Punjab will contribute in down payment and offer bikes on an easy monthly installment plan.

In this regard, PITB Chairman Faisal Yousaf stated that the PITB established portal helped students in applying online for bikes.

Wenchang, China (Reuters): China on Friday launched an uncrewed spacecraft on a nearly two-month mission to retrieve rocks and soil from the far side of the moon, the first country to make such an ambitious attempt.

The Long March-5, China's largest rocket, blasted off at 5:27 p.m. Beijing time (0927 GMT) from Wenchang Space Launch Center on the southern island of Hainan with the more than 8 metric ton Chang'e-6 probe.

Chang'e-6 is tasked with landing in the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon, which perpetually faces away from the Earth, after which it will retrieve and return samples.

The launch marks another milestone in China's lunar and space exploration programme.

"It is a bit of a mystery to us how China has been able to develop such an ambitious and successful programme in such a short time," said Pierre-Yves Meslin, a French researcher working on one of the scientific objectives of the Chang'e-6 mission.

In 2018, Chang'e-4 gave China its first unmanned moon landing, also on the far side. In 2020, Chang'e-5 marked the first time humans retrieved lunar samples in 44 years, and Chang'e-6 could make China the first country to retrieve samples from the moon's "hidden" side.

FOREIGN PAYLOADS

The launch was attended by scientists, diplomats and space agency officials from France, Italy, Pakistan, and the European Space Agency, all of which have moon-studying payloads aboard Chang'e-6.

But no U.S. organisations applied to get a payload spot, according to Ge Ping, deputy director of the China National Space Administration's (CNSA) Lunar Exploration and Space Program.

Karachi: Bulls ran high at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as KSE-100 bench mark gained over 1,200 points in the intraday trade on Friday.

The index gained 1272.13, or 1.8 per cent and stand at 71,929.77 points at 4:27pm from the previous close of 70,657.64. Finally, the index closed at 71,902.09, up by 1244.45 points or 1.76pc from the previous close.

According to the experts, the market is gaining momentum after correction of three per cent during the last three days.

They said that the investors are optimistic regarding the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme and the upcoming investor friendly budget